Completely Helpless
by Heartbroken1
Summary: When your child is hurting, you’d do anything to ease their pain. Renee is faced with the difficulty of knowing there’s nothing she can do to help Bella feel better… and Florida is not an option.


Summary: When your child is hurting, you'd do anything to ease their pain. Renee is faced with the difficulty of knowing there's nothing she can do to help Bella feel better… and Florida is _not _an option.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No copyright infringement is intended.

Thanks to Eowyn77 for beta-reading this!

Completely Helpless _by Heartbroken1_

It'd been nearly twenty years since I'd been standing in this spot. When I left, I'd vowed I would never come back. Yet here I stood. My heart was pounding wildly in my chest as I reached for the doorbell.

There was only one thing that could have ever brought me back to this dreary little town. Bella. My daughter. I would do anything for her.

Charlie called and informed me of her state and my heart broke for her. How could this boy have devastated her so badly? She hadn't been here long enough to form that kind of bond. Had she?

"Renee, thank you for coming." Charlie's face showed the relief heard in his voice.

My softer side, the part that still loved the father of my child, ached to reach out and hug him, comfort him. Instead, I decided to be the woman he'd recognize. "Where is she?" I snapped.

"She's in her room," he said, motioning his arm toward the staircase. "I think she's asleep."

"Asleep? Charlie, it's 2:00 in the afternoon."

"Renee," his voice was tense, "I'm not going to let you blame me for this."

A snort escaped my body as I scoffed at his ridiculous accusation. I didn't blame him. Not really. There was only one person to blame and _he_ wasn't here right now. As we approached Bella's door, a soft sob echoed down the hallway.

"Oh, Charlie."

He nodded and dropped his eyes when they began to fill with tears. It seemed that Bella's condition wasn't just hard on her. It was destroying her father as well.

I pushed the door open to see my daughter, my baby, curled up in a ball. The covers pulled tightly to her chest. She was asleep, but she was crying. Her whimpering broke my heart.

"How long has she been like this?"

"She hasn't ever pulled out of it." He sighed, running his fingers through his thinning hair. "All she does is call his name… and cry."

This was horrible. In such a short time, her hair had lost all its shine. Her skin was an unhealthy gray and her cheeks looked as though they'd been permanently stained by the tears.

Forcing my feet to move forward, I sat down on Bella's bed and stroked her hair, half expecting clumps to fall out in my hand.

"Edward," she moaned, leaning into my touch. "Please don't leave me. I need you. Edward…"

Tears burned my eyes as I witnessed firsthand the damage that this Edward had caused to my Bella's heart. I looked up into Charlie's face as he wiped away the tears from his cheeks.

"I should have come earlier," I said to Charlie, while cursing myself internally.

"I should have insisted…earlier," he said, trying to ease the guilty pain of a horrible mother. "She will get through this, you know." He'd said the words, but as our eyes looked at her again, I'm not sure that either of us believed them.

I attempted a smile and nodded. "I'm sure she'll pull out of this when I get her back to Florida."

Charlie dropped his eyes and sighed. The time he'd spent with his daughter had been limited while she was growing up and I knew that both of them had enjoyed these last few months together.

But Bella had been hurt by this boy and needed her mother. She needed _me_. And I would be there for her.

"Bella, I'm here to take you home," I whispered, placing a kiss on her cheek.

She rolled over and looked at me, but there was no life in her eyes. She didn't _see_ me. I fought against the tears -- the anguish -- that I felt and remained strong. For Bella. Like she'd always been strong for me.

"If you'll help me, Charlie." I glanced up to Bella's father and he nodded, walking over to take the suitcase out of the closet.

As we began to put her clothes into the bags, she sat upright in her bed with determination and fury flashing in her eyes. "I am _not _leaving!" she screamed, shocking both her father and I.

He shrugged.

Bella jumped from her bed and jerked the suitcase out of my hands and threw it across the room, scattering clothes in its path.

"Honey, it's going to be okay."

"It will _never_ be okay," she said, narrowing her eyes at me. "Forks is all I have left. I can't leave. I won't leave. It's all I have left!" With each phrase, her voice rose in volume and intensity. "You can't make me leave."

Never before had Bella acted this way, not even as a child. She actually frightened me -- and Charlie.

Once the closet and drawers had been successfully emptied of their contents and the floor resembled a war zone, Bella melted into the mess. She dropped her head into her hands and sobbed.

I knelt down next to her and wrapped my arm around her shoulders.

Her red blood-shot eyes looked into my face. "I am not leaving Forks." Although her voice was no more than a whisper, the same passion remained. "I'm staying right…" She shot a quick glance at Charlie, who nodded. "I'm staying right here."

"Very well, Bella. Whatever you want." I fought against the jealousy rising in my stomach. She actually _wanted _to stay here -- with her father. She wanted to stay in this rainy hellhole with the parent that wasn't me. "Would you like me to help you clean this up?"

"No." She gripped at a blue blouse, raising it to her nose, which instigated another onslaught of sobs.

"I'll help her later," Charlie promised. "Would that be okay, Bells?"

She nodded, holding onto that damn blouse like it was her lifeline. Charlie looked as puzzled by her reaction as I felt.

"I'm gonna go then…" I said softly, "back to Florida."

She hiccupped and smiled, the most pathetic smile I'd ever seen on her beautiful face. "Thanks…Mom. I'll…be…fine."

Charlie and I looked at each other, both reluctant of how fine she would ever be.

"I love you, Bella." I pulled her into another hug, wishing I could squeeze all her pain away. "Call me, if you need me."

I followed Charlie out into the hall, only to turn and take one more look at the little girl sitting in the middle of her bedroom floor, clutching a piece of clothing.

She was completely heartbroken. Devastated.

And there wasn't a damn thing I could do to help her.

I'd never felt so completely helpless in all my life.


End file.
